Perpendicular Grip Squat Bar

One of the most standard exercises for rowers is the squat. The drill works the leg and core intensively. Unfortunately, it can still be impeded by arm impairments as the arms are required for steadying what is often some quite heavy weight (the Marlow RC LTA/PR3 athletes regularly squat over 100 kg). This is something Marlow pararower Ella Holoway found out trying to manage with her Erb’s Palsy condition which affects the motion of her shoulder. One of the challenges is that she cannot hold a weight bar on her shoulders in the traditional squat grip. She can’t really turn her right hand to be lateral to her shoulders to grip the bar. The solution is a perpendicular grip bar which allows Ella to keep her hands in a comfortable and strong position. The specific model that we obtained is the “DTX 7ft Safety Squat Bar” which was the lowest priced model (about £100), but works just fine.